Out-Law / Your Daily Need-To-Know

Public fear of e-commerce appeased by BS7799, says KPMG

29 Apr 2003, 12:00 am

Privacy issues are the biggest barrier to buying on-line, but internet users are reassured by sites showing evidence of independent endorsement, particularly the British Standard for Security accreditation, BS7799, according to research carried out for KPMG.

A quarter of the 2,076 participants in the survey picked worries over the privacy of their personal details as the main reason for not using e-commerce sites. In particular, respondents were concerned about the protection of credit card and banking details.

The survey, carried out by YouGov, shows that web users are reassured by evidence of independent accreditation. This used to include the hallmark of the Which? Web Trader scheme – but Which? recently abandoned the scheme due to rising costs.

More relevant today, 38% of respondents said that evidence that a site had achieved the British Standard for Security accreditation (BS7799) would make them feel most comfortable about purchasing and banking on-line.

In fact, 90% of those surveyed thought that all web sites selling goods or services on-line did adhere to this standard, but this is far from the case. By February this year, only 80 UK companies had achieved accreditation for the standard, a record which David Hendon, Director of Communication and Information Industries at the Department of Trade and Industry described as "appalling".

Robert Coles, head of Information Security Services at KPMG said:

"Security accreditation may be low on businesses' list of priorities, but consumers clearly expect it, and unless companies give IT security a higher profile, standards such as BS7799 could become mandatory."

The message to companies is that security must not only be in place –it must be seen to be in place.

KPMG's survey found other concerns include the likelihood of misuse of personal information (12%), technical problems (11%) and fear of hacking and viruses (9%).